The Rumeli Hisarı (Roman Fortress) was erected on the European side of the Bosporus at its narrowest, under Fatih Mehmet, the Conqueror, who had it constructed to cut Constantinople off from the Black Sea and possible assistance from there. It could do so because on the other, Asian, side there already was the smaller Anadolu Hisarı, (Anatolian Fortress).Fatih chose the site and drew a sketch of its plan. Three main towers were built under one of his Vezirs. They were Saruca Paşa, Halil Paşa, his Grand Vezir, and Zaganos Paşa. I have this on the authority of Strolling through Istanbul, that names the towers they supervised but in my edition mentions the north one twice. It was built in four months. The castle was restored in 1953 (400’th anniversary of the conquest), destroying a little village that had crown within its walls. Now there is mainly a little park occupying the 250 x 125 metres (max) space within the walls. I visited it on a rainy and overcast December day in 2006. I think taking pictures would have been more comfortable on a summers day, but the clouds and general atmospheric conditions, and the utter absence of other tourists, made me enjoy taking these. I add some shots I took of the Bebek village nearby, and another village, a bit closer to Istanbul proper. For another fortress built by Mehmet Fatih I visited at the same time: Yedikule.